17/12/2013

The
European Environment Agency (EEA’s) annual Transport and Environment
Reporting Mechanism (TERM) report is a benchmark document for policy
makers and transport planners. This year, the report focuses on urban
transport and includes references to ECF publications in some important
places. A reason to talk to its authors.

Besides an overview of current transport demand, the pressures
from the transport sector on the environment, and related impacts and
responses, this year’s TERM report focuses on urban transport. What’s more, it uses ECF fact sheets on bike sharing and CO2 savings from cycling as well as ECF’s Cycling Barometer
to underpin its conclusions. ECF published the Cycling Barometer for
the first time this year in order to provide an overview about the
cycling climate in European countries.

“We were looking for European figures for cycling, and the ECF
documents were excellent sources for the information we needed,” says
Alfredo Sánchez Vicente, project manager for transport at the EEA. “It
is difficult to measure the situation of cycling in different European
countries, but with the Cycling Barometer we had a reliable comparison.
It also allowed us to highlight the positive development of cycling in
some countries without a strong cycling culture, especially in southern
Europe.”

On
bike sharing, the EEA was glad that an overview was available as
well: the ECF fact sheet giving an overview of bike sharing in different
countries. ”There is a lot of data on bike sharing systems in
individual cities,” explains Alfredo Sánchez Vicente, “But there was
little to nothing from a European perspective before ECF published this
excellent overview.”

Cycling and walking on the rise, but air quality still a problem

The TERM report finds that the mode share of walking and cycling is
on the rise in most cities and metropolitan areas in Europe (see p. 46).
As prime examples, the EEA cites Stockholm and Paris, where the share
of walking and cycling in the modal split rose by 10% and by 5%,
respectively between 2009 and 2011. At the same time, individual
motorized transport decreased in these places, which suggests that
people made the switch to non-motorized active modes of transport.

A good way to encourage leaving one’s car at home is the introduction
of a congestion charge, according to the EEA. Traffic and CO2 emission
levels decreased quite drastically in cities that limited access for
cars to their inner cities. Rome, for instance experienced 18% less
motorised traffic and 21% less CO2 emissions after the introduction of
its congestion charge scheme (p. 51).
Yet, the report also shows that air quality is still a problem in
many urban areas in Europe.

The EEA found that up to a third of
Europeans living in cities are still exposed to air pollutant levels
exceeding EU air quality standards. Between 2009 and 2011, up to 96 % of
city dwellers were exposed to fine particulate matter concentrations
above WHO guidelines and up to 98 % were exposed to ozone levels above
WHO guidelines. WHO guidelines are much stricter than current EU air
quality standards.

Meanwhile, the ECF cycling barometer is to be published again in
2014. Asked whether he would use it again as a source if he had to
compile another report about urban transport, Alfredo Sánchez Vicente
has a clear answer: “I would, definitely.”

Our portal includes a large selection B2B in the manufacture and distribution of sporting goods. A large database of manufacturers and customers, and all information necessary for your transactions.Start your Business Now ! FOR FREE !